Community activist 'walked her talk'

   It was a startling image - an old woman being dragged to the curb of Tejon Street by two cops, an ugly road-rash welt on her leg.

   For some, the removal of the peace demonstrator from the 2007 St. Patrick's Day Parade in downtown Colorado Springs inspired cries of police brutality, while others wanted to know why that short, silverhaired lady seemed so stubborn and angry.

   That woman, Elizabeth Fineron, 66, died Wednesday. Her death brought an end to decades of service to the homeless, church, schoolchildren, peace and community health.

   She apparently died in her sleep from complications of diabetes and heart disease, said Stephen Handen, a longtime friend who served the homeless with her as part of Bijou Community.

   Those who knew her best say that image of Fineron being dragged from the parade was telling because it demonstrated her passion and determination. But it was unfortunate, they say, because it made her seem so confrontational. Not that she was afraid of a good fight, mind you.

   "She was a feisty little Irish gal," Handen said.

   The Chicago native moved to Colorado Springs in the mid-1980s. She was a nun and schoolteacher who left the vocation but never left the Catholic Church.

   She moved here to work with Bijou Community, an organization that helped found the Marian House Soup Kitchen and other services for the poor and homeless. As a resigned nun, she wasn't much better off financially than those she served.

   "She was a poor woman. She lived on Social Security," said Handen. "But she was rich in friends and what she did with her life."

   She served many years on the board of directors of Peak Vista Community Health Centers, and as a member of the Pikes Peak Justice and Peace Commission.

   "She was a strong, dedicated, persevering person who really walked her talk," said Jeff Briggs, executive director of the Pikes Peak Justice and Peace Commission. "She's a peace activist, so she had strong convictions, and she was willing to stand up for them."

   Injustice, war and poverty motivated Fineron to act.

   "She had a limited income and limited physical capacity. But even though she had these impediments, she was always searching her soul for how she could make a difference," said Eric Verlo, a fellow peace activist who was arrested with Fineron at the St. Patrick's Day Parade.

   The morning of March 17, 2007, she called Verlo to say she didn't feel up to walking in the parade, he said, so he talked her into riding in his truck and waving to the crowd.

   But when police stopped their anti-war demonstration, she slipped out of the truck and demanded to know why. Verlo said that seeing a small, older woman who relied on a cane confront what she perceived as injustice, and sacrifice her body to do so, is to be admired, whether you agreed with her politics or not.

   Charges were eventually dropped against Fineron and Verlo in November, but she was stung by threatening hate mail she received after the arrest.

   Fineron was determined to use her life to make a difference, and her friends say she succeeded.

   "Elizabeth certainly lived up to her vision," Handen said.

   Funeral arrangements have not yet been made.